Ecological Echoes in Place Names: A Study of Biodiversity-Based Toponyms in Kokrajhar, Assam

A toponym is a place name given to any specific location or to any geographical features like city, town, hill, river etc. This study examines the toponymy of five revenue circles of Kokrajhar district (BTR), Assam, focusing on how local flora and fauna have influenced village and town names. An official village directory, primary and secondary sources was used to collect data on plant- and animal-based toponyms. A total of 197 place names were identified, out of which as 65 of them were derived from plant and animal species. Among plant-based names, 46 species across 21 families were documented. These species, mainly native and dominant, have ethnobotanical importance and are traditionally used for timber, handicrafts, furniture, musical instruments, medicinal, and cultural purposes. Trees constitute the majority (25 species) of plant-based toponyms, followed by shrubs (9 species) herbs (7species), and single species of aquatic plant, climber, and liana. Animalbased names represented 16 species from 11 families, with 17 villages named after aquatic animals such as fish and crabs, and others after land animals like roosters (3 villages) and horses (3 villages). Linguistic analysis showed that over 53% of place names were derived from the Bodo language, indicating a strong indigenous influence, followed by Assamese (30%) and other regional languages. More than 40% of lexical items overlap across languages, reflecting shared traditional ecological knowledge and cultural exchange. The study highlights the integral role of biodiversity and indigenous knowledge systems in shaping the cultural landscape through toponymy.

@article{yutika2026,
  author  = {Yutika Narzary*},
  title   = {{Ecological Echoes in Place Names: A Study of Biodiversity-Based Toponyms in Kokrajhar, Assam}},
  journal = {Journal of Bioresearch},
  year    = {2026},
  volume  = {5},
  number  = {1},
  pages   = {17-29},
  doi     = {https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.16949924},
}